This should certainly be a wake up. Make sure your website is renewed and possibly by the .info .org of your site to be sure.
.-= Rowell Auctions´s last blog ..100192 - 699 Reynolds Street Augusta GA 30901 - February 16th thru March 2nd =-.

I keep some geo type real estate domain names as an investment. I would not pay $10 for "TheSarasotaMLS.com". As and investment grade domain name is is not very good. Clearly the real value in this domain name was the work the owner had put into it over the years.

SarasotaMLS.org which is a better name is available for reg fee right now.

http://www.luxurysarasotarealestate.com/blog/sara...

**Cal´s last blog post..Real Estate Agents don’t go inactive, get on referral with Keller Williams!</abbr></abbr>

Excellent post Jay, after the SARjacking the SAR's site is ranking very high for most Sarasota real estate keywords. I wonder what the SAR will do with all the leads generated by Marc's hard work.

Hector Lesende

Miami Real Estate

Dang, one more thing I forgot to add:

Daniel, you said: "Maybe unscrupulous is a poor choice of word, but I think that many might agree that your initial sales pitch and the equally-lengthy lawyer threat that pursued have not been the best advertisement for the services that you (and hundreds of thousands of other companies) offer."

Your last sentence about "hundreds of thousands" of companies that offer my similar services is very wrong. There are only about 15 legitimate domain name professional consultants that are recognized in our industry. From what I'm told, I could be one of them. I'm not counting the "auto-appraisal" websites that appraise your domains, but even those services are limited to less than 50, as far as I know.

Okay, just had to clear that up. I promise I won't intrude on your space again unless invited.

Success to all!

**Stephen Douglas´s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH

Stephen -

First, thanks for all the kind words about the blog, it's very appreciated. There are some great readers and commenters (and guest authors) here.

The self-promotion and "advertising" is always tricky for me. I've had people come here and do ridiculous things -- such as a real estate agent, IN PHOENIX, promoting a listing or their area of expertise. Sorry, but if you want to do that, do it on your own blog.

Usually it's much more fuzzy, and if the comment contributes good info, I'll let it stand. I just don't want the comments to turn into an advertising section. I moderate with a very light touch. I also have *all* comment URL's set to "dofollow", including the "Comment Luv" that adds the commenters last blog post. (embedded URLs tend to get flagged and go into moderation -- that's why some of your comment didn't appear immediately and others did). I think the dofollow is a pretty decent reward.

I also have paying advertisers, so I have to be careful and respect their positions.

was sold by a domain expert named Rick Schwartz for $750,000 this year

I bet whoever sold it to him for $100 is slamming their head against a wall right now.

I promise I won’t intrude on your space again unless invited.

You're welcome any time.

I appreciate your comments, Jay and Daniel. It's true that when I take the time to write an informative article for an hour as a contribution to somebody's blog, reviewing it multiple times so it's not full of spelling and grammatical mistakes, that I'd like to think I'll get some customers from my time. This is true of all of us, and denying it is somewhat silly.

I'm not filing any lawsuits for libel. Greg can rest easy (not that he was worried). However, I stated that to make a point: Just because I'm here making a statement that is TRUE regarding the real estate industry's slow take on the domain industry doesn't mean I'm a "carpetbagger" or "unscrupulous" as Gregory insinuated. I provided what I believed to be informative and helpful information on this well-run blog. I've seen hundreds of similar blogs that don't come close to the conversation here, and I don't waste my time posting on them. However, this blog's professionalism lured me into taking my valuable time to post. It's not unreasonable or unusual that the blog owner rewards informative posts with allowing some sort of mini-promotion of the poster. I do it all the time on my domain blog, within reason.

I appreciate reading all your comments here. I'm pretty impressed with this blog and the owner of the blog, and the contributors. Also, I produced a live modeling event in Scottsdale about 20 years ago, and one of the photos is on my facebook pages. I liked Phoenix/Scottsdale and the people who lived there. It's a great place and growing exponentially.

My final point for Jay's readers: Go ahead and rent out spots on big real estate websites for your basic info pages, but to be a real businessman, buy domains that define your areas and your expertise (like Greg Bain did) , but build a blog or a website SEPARATELY from the "directories" and put all your content on your own hosted site. It costs about $10 a month for your own hosted site.

I make good money advising real estate business people (as just one business sector) on how to do this, and nobody has ever called me unscrupulous. My Linkedin profile is on my blog where you can see my accomplishments and recommendations from people I've worked for and with. I've sold over $25 million in domain names, and made several million in consulting in this area. The things you see and take for granted are tied into the business and associates I work with. (iReport.com, a domain owned by CNN, was sold by a domain expert named Rick Schwartz for $750,000 this year. When you see "i Report" on CNN, think about this. Rick may have bought that domain for less than $100. Nice return on that investment. More info:
http://www.ricksblog.com/my_weblog/2008/01/irepor...

Thanks Jay, for the opportunity to speak.

Wishing everyone great success,

Stephen Douglas
http://www.successclick.com

**Stephen Douglas´s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH</abbr></abbr>

I really don't want to delete any comments and I certainly don't want to close this post to comments.

@Stephen - your comment was VERY close to violating my comment policy due to advertising. I let it stand as written because it did provide some valuable insight.

@Gregory - that same comment policy includes no personal attacks.

This particular topic is a very emotional one, and it's easy to let tempers and feelings get out of hand.

I respectfully request that the two involved parties let it go or take it somewhere else.

Thanks!

Well this is all starting to sound like the political attack ads we're all too familiar with, which thankfully will soon end and we can all return to our precious Geico Gecko and Big Mac ads, YAY!

@Stephen - I think the "unscrupulous" aspect of the comment (although he didn't use the word) may have come from your two page self promoting comment. You obviously made the comment in an effort to advertise your business on this popular site, but in the process insulted most of the readers here (probably unknowingly) by implying that none of us were smart enough to purchase high quality domain names and setup a site of our own. We're all in the same boat here buddy, just real estate agents trying to make a living. Some know more about the web, some know less (most of Jay's reader's know more!). Maybe unscrupulous is a poor choice of word, but I think that many might agree that your initial sales pitch and the equally-lengthy lawyer threat that pursued have not been the best advertisement for the services that you (and hundreds of thousands of other companies) offer. Best of Luck

**Daniel Bates´s last blog post..McClellanville Creek Cleanup and Fishing Tournament</abbr></abbr>

Gregory Bain states that I am a "carpetbagger" because I understand the domain industry and have invested smartly in securing online "land". The definition of a carpetbagger, according to Webster is "a person perceived as an unscrupulous opportunist". Unscrupulous?

What Gregory doesn't tell you is that he makes domain investments similar to how I advise businesses. He bought a geo-specific domain name for his freebie site "littleeggharborhomes.com" and "ask4greg.com". But notice I said "freebie site". He points his decent domain investments to a "freebie" hosting source, "realestate.com", thereby enhancing realestate.com's SE positioning and not owning his content, seniority, comments, photos, and anything else he wishes to add to sell his services "Whether you are buying or selling a home, hire someone like me, who wants to earn your business." Seems hypocritical that Gregory would call me an unscrupulous salesman for offering my "virtual real estate" advice, while he asks for the same for his brick and mortar business.

Bain seems to be smart in some areas, but not in the area of libel. He should fear my attorney contacting him for making libelous remarks about me in a public forum. I'll think about that for the rest of the year, and make a decision in 2009 on whether to file. Lucky for me, I have several attorneys who practice in the NJ area..

The domain industry is a legitimate "virtual real estate" industry. Gregory Bain bought domains names to PROVE my comments. He just wasn't smart enough to host his sites separately from another company who gains from his efforts, and can shut him out when they want.

For those of you who want to buy a domain for a few thousand dollars and see it appreciate in value in a year or less to 10 times that amount, then LEARN THE DOMAIN BUSINESS.

Time to get real and understand what stands before you. If you think paying money for college tuition to learn how to expand your knowledge in the domain or real estate business makes your professor a "carpetbagger", then drop out, stay ignorant, vote McCailin, and most definitely suffer because of eight years of GW Bush manipulation.

I posted here to offer sincere help to real estate brokers. Obviously, I touched a nerve with some people who feel they won't be able to "catch up". Heaven forbid I should get paid for my expertise!

Good luck to all.

Stephen Douglas
http://www.successclick.com

**Stephen Douglas´s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH</abbr></abbr>

@Gregory - I like your sarcastic wit! I wonder home much it will cost me to get help with that SOE, I think you said logging, and the whatamakalit. You know the thing that I use on my computer. Oh by the way I know how to turn mine on now, all by my lonesome. Pretty cool, huh.

**James´s last blog post..The housing market in Houston is seeing an interesting trend in leasing.</abbr></abbr>

James, I feel the same way. But, that's like being over 50 and not being a member of AARP. Where will all the Lobbyists go?

Maybe, they will all become carpetbaggers like Stephen Douglas. Telling us how stupid we are and for a fee they will help us in the complicated world of seo, blogging, and domain names in that internet thingamajig.

the deep deep pockets of real estate agents every where

This is just another example of the anti-competitive nature of NAR and local boards of REALTORS. Lets be very honest on this subject there are a number of different domains that are using the MLS in them in the Sarasota market. And the only one that the Sarasota MLS has gone after is Marc's what that tells me is that they only came after him because he was out ranking them. I now hope that the DOJ comes down on the boards like never before. It is not consumers that need protection from horrible agents that miss use a generic term like MLS, it is agents as well as consumers that need protection against the Oligopoly known as the association of REALTORS.

I believe that as agents we should have the choice of whether or not we want to be part of the association of REALTORS as I have come to the point where I no longer have any desire to be a member.

**James´s last blog post..The housing market in Houston is seeing an interesting trend in leasing.</abbr></abbr>

Don't you just love it when the MLS board goes after its members under the guise of "protecting the public?"

I had an old page on my site that had a title tag in it that said something like "Minnesota MLS listings" which is really not misleading because you can fill out a form on the site so I can send you all of the actual MLS listing datasheets that you want. The board said I was "implying that the visitor could search the entire Minnesota MLS" directly from the site. I had totally forgotten about the page until the board sent me an email threatening to cut me off if I did not remove the offending term within five days.

I am thankful that the board did not have issue with my entire site or domain name.

Interestingly, all of our big nationwide competitors use the term "Search the MLS" with impunity, giving a disadvantage to the local mls board members. Maybe I don't understand how the system works or legalities involved, but I am wondering why they can't just cut the feed to these big out-of-state-entities.

**kermit´s last blog post..Hutchinson MN Real Estate for Sale. Only $89,900!</abbr></abbr>

Jay - thanks for using the strength of your site to support an important topic like this. My belief is this is only the beginning of the story. The NAR, local MLS's, and tons of real estate agents across the country look at all the successful agents sites with such envy...it's inevitable that we will be tested more and more in the future. If they can't beat us, they will just pass more laws in the future...just to level the playing field. Just my two cents...you can all guess at what I'm thinking with all this.

Now... what bothers most of us Internet savvy real estate agents is the theft of Marc’s hard earned work on his Internet links for his site theSarasotamls.com. It’s one thing to have your head in the sand and fight Marc out of jealousy over his success on Internet rankings, but entirely another when SAR steals his property and redirects his hard work on linking towards their own site. This is an absolute outrage that they were awarded even one link for doing absolutely nothing to earn it. That's bull....

**Northwest Living´s last blog post..September Existing Home Sales up 5.5%</abbr></abbr>

Jay that is one heck of a comment you've got there from Stephen! What a huge pat on the back for me. ;-)

I learned early, real early - and the hard way, that I needed a generic prod/serve domain after NAR took away my rights to use PhoenixRealtor.com. I had bought PhoenixRealtor.com for $1000 many years back and was less than a year into building and promoting it when NAR wrote to me. And to tell the truth, I couldn't be happier that they did stop me (especially so early on), because it prompted me to search out a domain I liked and buy it. Enter PhoenixHomes.com...

Yet here I sit today with about 30 domains I consider valuable, 2 of which I consider "whales": PhoenixHomes.com and ScottsdaleHomes.com. Both were well worth the cash investment I had to cough up IMO. And, I am not done... I am in the middle of a 2 week long domain purchase right now. :-) Though, I would sell some of the domains I currently have (inquire within and let me know your niche if interested, I have local domains only).

Sure, I would've built the same sites, with the same content and designs that I have today using different domains, but I am so glad NAR stepped in when they did! Because I feel I got a good deal on my "whale domains" based on when I bought them. And, I feel that the ease of remembering the domain (once I do get someone to the site) is priceless.

Marc will come out a better, stronger man from all of this. I have no doubt. But those mere words do not take the sting out of what SAR has done.

Matt Pellerin - Realtor Real Estate Agent

**Matt´s last blog post..Scottsdale Quarter to be more like a Mac than PC</abbr></abbr>

What's sad about this is that Marc had the right idea from the start, but depended on a "higher level authority" regarding the rights to the domain name. One of the longest running jokes within the domain industry (aftermarket/development companies and investors) was that the real estate industry, selling property in the real world, couldn't get it in their heads that the virtual world property was cheaper, and appreciated in value much faster. However, that's changing now.

If Marc had just purchased a domain name with his geo-specific location and his generic services (without infringing, even with permission, on the TM holder's license), he wouldn't be in this situation right now. He'd be doing well, based on the thousands of hours of work on his website over the years, and his domain name/s (good to buy a few similar domains to point to the site) would be all his.

It is stories like you publish here that are really warning agents and brokers nationwide to the fact that their own efforts to promote their individual work can be quickly robbed from them by the company they work for, or even the listing services, realtor services, etc.

As a domain consultant for five years, in just the last two years, over half of my clients have been real estate attorneys and brokers who are buying up domain names and promoting their services SEPARATELY from the "freebie site" or other "gimmees" offered by their brokerages. I advise all my real estate business clients to OWN their own domains and create their own websites. A productive blogsite, which can bring you in tons of new customers, can cost as little as $300 - $500. A killer domain name, which secures your local area and defines your services, (most of these domains are already owned by domain speculators) will cost you from $250 - $50,000, depending on how serious you want to get.

For example, I own PalmSpringsHome.org and DramaticHomes.com. The first domain describes a "geo-specific" product (a home in Palm Springs) which can be set up as a blog describing the Palm Springs area, including recreation, hot restaurants, services, shopping locations, etc. Included in this blog will be YOU talking about how great the area is, and promoting your links and contact info to your users.

A blog is very important to a "customer based service" like the real estate industry, because for a half hour every day, you can write 300 words on your blog giving little bits of relevant info to whoever visits your blog. You can give this blogsite address out on your biz cards, invite your customers to login and sign up to receive notices, and you also excite the major search engines with relevant content they love to "crawl" and add to their customers' relevant search queries. Soon, you'll find hundreds of potential clients coming to your blog to find out what great tips you're going to offer.

It's no secret anymore that a generic descriptive domain name is very valuable. You might spend $5,000 to get a very clear and descriptive domain this year, but next year, it only costs $10 to renew, and you get all the same or better leads and exposure. Additionally, the money you invest in an "aftermarket domain" never goes away, especially when you work on it and create new links and content. The search engines catalog all of your work, and it makes the value of your domain name appreciate.

I advise any SERIOUS real estate business person to look into purchasing domain names that define their experience, focus, location/service, or even their full name.

I'd be glad to answer questions at no cost for your readers at:
http://www.successclick.com

cheers,

Stephen Douglas

Successful Domain Management™

Blog: Successclick.com

DomainRelevance.com

"Own Your Competition™"

**Stephen Douglas´s last blog post..SHOULD WE SELL OR KEEP OUR DOMAINS?</abbr></abbr>

Thanks for posting about this crime. The Sarasota Association of REALTORS leadership board seems to have only one purpous in mind in taking Marc's domain, getting the 10's of thousands of links Marc has built to the domain. I am guessing the there are going to be a few SAR board members with damaged online reputations.

Jay thanks for the support - I asked Marc if he would put together a post with a time line in it (I had suggested it to a few people as a potential topic, but then I realized on Marc had the straight goods) and he has been kind enough to do so. You can read Marc's timeline on this own blog here: http://www.luxurysarasotarealestate.com/blog/sara...

For those writing about this, please include that blog post in your list of assets as it has more reliable information pertaining to that actual sequence of events etc -

Once again, thanks to Jay (And everyone) for being so awesome in supporting my good friend in this time of extreme stress. We speak several times a day via messenger, and he can't say enough about how amazing you folks truly are.

**Morgan Carey´s last blog post..Recent Vero Beach Real Estate Sales (October 21 - October 27, 2008)</abbr></abbr>

I'm donating all my ad revenue to this cause. EVERYONE should dedicate one domain to this. it ads up.
http://www.NotTheSarasotaMLS.com/

It is absolutely criminal that they did this!!!

**John´s last blog post..Hanover Real Estate</abbr></abbr>

@Daniel Bates... dude, I almost spit my ice tea out while LMAO. I got my e-Pro designation when it first came out, and you know what, you will not find it on my sites, my letterhead, my cards, etc. because it doesn't even deserve to be mentioned. I felt 'duped' 20 minutes into the online class I took.

As for Marc, NAR needs to step in and reverse this soon, IMO. I just came across TheCityNameMLS.com (real city name w/held so as not to start another association war) on REW in a recent thread today. So, unless NAR makes this a rule across the country, I don't see how they can just stand by while an association that they (NAR) govern picks on one individual.

Matt Pellerin - Realtor Real Estate Agent

**Matt´s last blog post..Scottsdale Quarter to be more like a Mac than PC</abbr></abbr>

This is the same NAR that says you can claim to be an "E-Pro" if you can sit relatively still in a class for a few hours, pay them money, and answer your email. Pretty steep credentials....but the "ethics badge" we all wear (symbolically...unless you made one yourself and then you're a dork) as Realtors has only involves two of those steps, so that should tell you something right there.

Jay, the SAR is no different than any other AR out there. They are all money sucking as-beens who have found a way to make money off of hard working agents. They teach the classes "required" to get a license and hold the license. They set the dues to cover their salaries. They write rules and opinions that protect the Association and fleece the agent. They can't sell real estate, so they control the way we sell it and pay them to do it. You will be able to re-write your story over and over again by just changing the initials and agents name. Domain names is a small part of their far reaching tenacles that destroy our practice of selling real estate. But, thanks for writing about it.

Jay, thanks for spreading the word. It's amazing that the SAR only had one outcome in mind - to take complete control of the name. No negotiating, no compromise, only give us the name!

**Tina Fountain´s last blog post..Cobb County Luxury Homes</abbr></abbr>

Jay -

That an Association is actively working against one of its members is frightening and damaging to their and all Realtor Associations - for so many reasons.

It's more frustrating because there is likely only a small minority of Realtors who are both aware and somewhat knowledgeable about this issue.

@Eric - Cal did the work on the links, I just shamelessly copied them.

@Charles - I'm not a member of the SAR, and it still makes me nervous. That any Association, whose main purpose it to help its members could make such an irrational ploy should be frightening to everyone. Your Association may be next...

Jay:

Great post that gives a clear, concise report on the situation. Also, you have provided the ultimate list of related blogs/articles.

Well done.

**vicki´s last blog post..Davis, a Bicycle Paradise</abbr></abbr>

Well, done; Sensei....

**Matthew Rathbun´s last blog post..Twitter’ers: Friend or Foes?</abbr></abbr>

I had a similar thing happen to me. An agent from an outer island filed an ethics complaint against me for using “MLS” in one of my sites domain names. Luckily the Honolulu Board of Realtors Grievance Committee had enough sense to Dismiss it based on the following:

Complaint did not rise to a possible violation of the Code, as the “MLS” is not trademarked by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) therefore cannot be banned from use by NAR. MLS has become a generic term for listings of available sales and rentals.

This is just not right that Marc has to go through and everyone should do what ever they can to help him in this time of need. I am definitely making a donation of at least $100. Whether, it is a donation, posting about it on your blog with a link to his new site. They are definitely going after what he has worked hard to build and that is not right. What is wrong with people these days?

I wish you the best Marc!

It is abuse of power. The site was 301'd to his new url, so their "issue" was a non-issue...but yet they went forward and hi-jacked his domain for the "good" of the members. If I was a member, I'd be nervous.

**Charles Richey´s last blog post..Don’t cross the SAR</abbr></abbr>

Jay;

Thanks for your support and leadership on this. What SAR did is a travesty. Also, thanks for collecting all of these links. I will be sending some links to y'all from EoS.

Best to you.

Eric

**Eric Blackwell´s last blog post..Sarasota Association of REALTORS - They need my online reputation management help!</abbr></abbr>

Does SAR have the ethics to notify Marc of all the new leads they're getting????

OH YEAH - They're Realtors that can take the business. Silly me. Ethics???

Jaz

**Jaz´s last blog post..Sarasota Association of Realtors = Pirates</abbr></abbr>

"I admire your Ethics!" Well, at least someone does. ;)

It saddens (and scares) me that SAR was able to hijack this domain, and in one swift swoop start sending all of Marc's efforts spinning down the toilet.

It's a travesty.

Yup.. I agree.. and to think, you STILL have to pay these guys..

I tell you, I think MLS and Realtor(R) should be government regulated...

**Jim Gatos´s last blog post..Nice Street Views - Stanton St</abbr></abbr>

Thanks for mentioning the fund!

This is becoming the place to get the newly outraged voices listed.

I admire your Ethics!

@ Jay - Really well done...thanks. What a capricious, deceitful, "jealous", dissolute group over there. What sent me beyond a boiling point was the "301"ing...Common!
@ Hi Carolyn - we just need to continue to make "noise" - purposeful and well constructed "noise".

Wow, the list keeps growing and growing. It is too bad that there are some agents (Brad in Reading) who don't really understand what this issue is about.

This should certainly be a wake up. Make sure your website is renewed and possibly by the .info .org of your site to be sure.
.-= Rowell Auctionsu00c2u00b4s last blog ..100192 - 699 Reynolds Street Augusta GA 30901 - February 16th thru March 2nd =-.

I keep some geo type real estate domain names as an investment. I would not pay $10 for "TheSarasotaMLS.com". As and investment grade domain name is is not very good. Clearly the real value in this domain name was the work the owner had put into it over the years.

SarasotaMLS.org which is a better name is available for reg fee right now.

http://www.luxurysarasotarealestate.com/blog/sara...

**Calu00c2u00b4s last blog post..Real Estate Agents donu00e2u0080u0099t go inactive, get on referral with Keller Williams!</abbr></abbr>

Excellent post Jay, after the SARjacking the SAR's site is ranking very high for most Sarasota real estate keywords. I wonder what the SAR will do with all the leads generated by Marc's hard work.

Hector Lesende

Miami Real Estate

Dang, one more thing I forgot to add:

Daniel, you said: "Maybe unscrupulous is a poor choice of word, but I think that many might agree that your initial sales pitch and the equally-lengthy lawyer threat that pursued have not been the best advertisement for the services that you (and hundreds of thousands of other companies) offer."

Your last sentence about "hundreds of thousands" of companies that offer my similar services is very wrong. There are only about 15 legitimate domain name professional consultants that are recognized in our industry. From what I'm told, I could be one of them. I'm not counting the "auto-appraisal" websites that appraise your domains, but even those services are limited to less than 50, as far as I know.

Okay, just had to clear that up. I promise I won't intrude on your space again unless invited.

Success to all!

**Stephen Douglasu00c2u00b4s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH

Stephen -

First, thanks for all the kind words about the blog, it's very appreciated. There are some great readers and commenters (and guest authors) here.

The self-promotion and "advertising" is always tricky for me. I've had people come here and do ridiculous things -- such as a real estate agent, IN PHOENIX, promoting a listing or their area of expertise. Sorry, but if you want to do that, do it on your own blog.

Usually it's much more fuzzy, and if the comment contributes good info, I'll let it stand. I just don't want the comments to turn into an advertising section. I moderate with a very light touch. I also have *all* comment URL's set to "dofollow", including the "Comment Luv" that adds the commenters last blog post. (embedded URLs tend to get flagged and go into moderation -- that's why some of your comment didn't appear immediately and others did). I think the dofollow is a pretty decent reward.

I also have paying advertisers, so I have to be careful and respect their positions.

was sold by a domain expert named Rick Schwartz for $750,000 this year

I bet whoever sold it to him for $100 is slamming their head against a wall right now.

I promise I wonu00e2u0080u0099t intrude on your space again unless invited.

You're welcome any time.

I appreciate your comments, Jay and Daniel. It's true that when I take the time to write an informative article for an hour as a contribution to somebody's blog, reviewing it multiple times so it's not full of spelling and grammatical mistakes, that I'd like to think I'll get some customers from my time. This is true of all of us, and denying it is somewhat silly.

I'm not filing any lawsuits for libel. Greg can rest easy (not that he was worried). However, I stated that to make a point: Just because I'm here making a statement that is TRUE regarding the real estate industry's slow take on the domain industry doesn't mean I'm a "carpetbagger" or "unscrupulous" as Gregory insinuated. I provided what I believed to be informative and helpful information on this well-run blog. I've seen hundreds of similar blogs that don't come close to the conversation here, and I don't waste my time posting on them. However, this blog's professionalism lured me into taking my valuable time to post. It's not unreasonable or unusual that the blog owner rewards informative posts with allowing some sort of mini-promotion of the poster. I do it all the time on my domain blog, within reason.

I appreciate reading all your comments here. I'm pretty impressed with this blog and the owner of the blog, and the contributors. Also, I produced a live modeling event in Scottsdale about 20 years ago, and one of the photos is on my facebook pages. I liked Phoenix/Scottsdale and the people who lived there. It's a great place and growing exponentially.

My final point for Jay's readers: Go ahead and rent out spots on big real estate websites for your basic info pages, but to be a real businessman, buy domains that define your areas and your expertise (like Greg Bain did) , but build a blog or a website SEPARATELY from the "directories" and put all your content on your own hosted site. It costs about $10 a month for your own hosted site.

I make good money advising real estate business people (as just one business sector) on how to do this, and nobody has ever called me unscrupulous. My Linkedin profile is on my blog where you can see my accomplishments and recommendations from people I've worked for and with. I've sold over $25 million in domain names, and made several million in consulting in this area. The things you see and take for granted are tied into the business and associates I work with. (iReport.com, a domain owned by CNN, was sold by a domain expert named Rick Schwartz for $750,000 this year. When you see "i Report" on CNN, think about this. Rick may have bought that domain for less than $100. Nice return on that investment. More info:
http://www.ricksblog.com/my_weblog/2008/01/irepor...

Thanks Jay, for the opportunity to speak.

Wishing everyone great success,

Stephen Douglas
http://www.successclick.com

**Stephen Douglasu00c2u00b4s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH</abbr></abbr>

Daniel Bates - Well said!

I really don't want to delete any comments and I certainly don't want to close this post to comments.

@Stephen - your comment was VERY close to violating my comment policy due to advertising. I let it stand as written because it did provide some valuable insight.

@Gregory - that same comment policy includes no personal attacks.

This particular topic is a very emotional one, and it's easy to let tempers and feelings get out of hand.

I respectfully request that the two involved parties let it go or take it somewhere else.

Thanks!

Well this is all starting to sound like the political attack ads we're all too familiar with, which thankfully will soon end and we can all return to our precious Geico Gecko and Big Mac ads, YAY!

@Stephen - I think the "unscrupulous" aspect of the comment (although he didn't use the word) may have come from your two page self promoting comment. You obviously made the comment in an effort to advertise your business on this popular site, but in the process insulted most of the readers here (probably unknowingly) by implying that none of us were smart enough to purchase high quality domain names and setup a site of our own. We're all in the same boat here buddy, just real estate agents trying to make a living. Some know more about the web, some know less (most of Jay's reader's know more!). Maybe unscrupulous is a poor choice of word, but I think that many might agree that your initial sales pitch and the equally-lengthy lawyer threat that pursued have not been the best advertisement for the services that you (and hundreds of thousands of other companies) offer. Best of Luck

**Daniel Batesu00c2u00b4s last blog post..McClellanville Creek Cleanup and Fishing Tournament</abbr></abbr>

Gregory Bain states that I am a "carpetbagger" because I understand the domain industry and have invested smartly in securing online "land". The definition of a carpetbagger, according to Webster is "a person perceived as an unscrupulous opportunist". Unscrupulous?

What Gregory doesn't tell you is that he makes domain investments similar to how I advise businesses. He bought a geo-specific domain name for his freebie site "littleeggharborhomes.com" and "ask4greg.com". But notice I said "freebie site". He points his decent domain investments to a "freebie" hosting source, "realestate.com", thereby enhancing realestate.com's SE positioning and not owning his content, seniority, comments, photos, and anything else he wishes to add to sell his services "Whether you are buying or selling a home, hire someone like me, who wants to earn your business." Seems hypocritical that Gregory would call me an unscrupulous salesman for offering my "virtual real estate" advice, while he asks for the same for his brick and mortar business.

Bain seems to be smart in some areas, but not in the area of libel. He should fear my attorney contacting him for making libelous remarks about me in a public forum. I'll think about that for the rest of the year, and make a decision in 2009 on whether to file. Lucky for me, I have several attorneys who practice in the NJ area..

The domain industry is a legitimate "virtual real estate" industry. Gregory Bain bought domains names to PROVE my comments. He just wasn't smart enough to host his sites separately from another company who gains from his efforts, and can shut him out when they want.

For those of you who want to buy a domain for a few thousand dollars and see it appreciate in value in a year or less to 10 times that amount, then LEARN THE DOMAIN BUSINESS.

Time to get real and understand what stands before you. If you think paying money for college tuition to learn how to expand your knowledge in the domain or real estate business makes your professor a "carpetbagger", then drop out, stay ignorant, vote McCailin, and most definitely suffer because of eight years of GW Bush manipulation.

I posted here to offer sincere help to real estate brokers. Obviously, I touched a nerve with some people who feel they won't be able to "catch up". Heaven forbid I should get paid for my expertise!

Good luck to all.

Stephen Douglas
http://www.successclick.com

**Stephen Douglasu00c2u00b4s last blog post..GODADDY TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT WATCH</abbr></abbr>

@Gregory - I like your sarcastic wit! I wonder home much it will cost me to get help with that SOE, I think you said logging, and the whatamakalit. You know the thing that I use on my computer. Oh by the way I know how to turn mine on now, all by my lonesome. Pretty cool, huh.

**Jamesu00c2u00b4s last blog post..The housing market in Houston is seeing an interesting trend in leasing.</abbr></abbr>